In the field of the packaging or wrapping of foodstuffs, household products such as detergent powders, pharmaceuticals and the like it is known to use prefabricated cases or boxes in a flat folded tubular shape which are supplied to the packaging machines for these products by taking them up in individual sequence from a store, usually of the hopper type, in which they are stacked. During the stage in which they are individually supplied, they are converted or erected into their tubular shape so that the product to be packaged can be supplied thereto and thereafter their opposite ends or heads are closed.
At present the process for obtaining these prefabricated boxes in this flat folded tubular shape substantially comprises a first stage for the preparation of sheets of board each comprising stamped therein in transverse and longitudinal rows or strips, a plurality of plane blanks joined together by connections which can be broken with notches defining the members for producing and closing the boxes and the separation of these sheets into individual plane blanks at the locations of these breakable connections for their palletization in superimposed layers with interposed plane support elements in transversally and longitudinally adjacent multiple stacks, and a second stage for the manual supply of these individual stacks of successive layers to a supply hopper from which these blanks are taken up and supplied in individual sequence for the operations for folding and glueing in the flat folded tubular shape and are usually packaged in this shape in boxed stacks or packs so that they can be supplied to consumers for the packaging therein of foodstuffs, household products such as detergent powders, pharmaceuticals and the like.
The machines for carrying out the above process to obtain these prefabricated boxes in their flat folded tubular shape are relatively complex and extremely costly with the result that advances in technology in the specific sector of packaging have led to testing of other methods to solve the problem of supplying these plane stamped members or blanks and their production as packaging boxes.